Issues throwing away food

I was wondering if other people here feel uncomfortable wasting or throwing away food since surgery?  I have some issues with this, I think because I grew up very poor.  I think part of my "clean your plate" mentality is from being a kid who was genuinely worried (and unduly worried) about whether I'd get my next meal.  I always did, so I'm not sure why I worried so much about it, but I always ate as much as I could, just in case.  Anyway, sometimes I just can't (or shouldn't) eat something, or it doesn't work out as leftovers, and my husband doesn't want it - in to the tra**** goes.  I didn't do this before surgery - even if I didn't want it, I'd eat it so it didn't go to waste.  Throwing out food causes me anxiety that I don't completely grasp.  I was just curious if anyone else is faced with this?  All I can say is thank goodness for this surgery, I am so messed up in the head I'd never be able to lose all this weight on my own.  I love you Thundercles, thank you for being the grouchiest pouchy west of the Mississippi!

Yes I do everyday. I was raised very poor sometimes not having much at all to eat. Then I was put in an orphanage when I was 9 and never had to do without food again. I know this is why I got so heavy. Now I hate throwing anything away, so I always save it and give it to my daughter and son in law and they love it , my daughter says they hardly ever have to cook or buy groceries. LOL

Lucky daughter!  We lived with my mom briefly after I graduated from undergraduate school, and when we moved into our own place the thing I missed most was having her cook for me.  I think I'm a better cook though LOL but its just a warm fuzzy feeling when mom takes care of you :)

Oh yeah.  This has been a struggle for a long time.  I try to remember something said at a Weigh****chers meeting a few years ago.  The $ that you think you are saving by "cleaning your plate" and not throwing the food away is temporary.  It will cost you more $ down the line paying for MDs and medical procedures due to your excess weight.  Let alone the psychological costs we all have to pay with our excess weight.  I admit that I've gotten better since I reframed this in my mind.  But sometimes it just causes me great guilt and anxiety.  I also grew up poor. -Dawn

That's a great way to look at it, thanks!

yeah, this is a two parter: one, am i still making the amount i used to make, and two, am i suffering from food fatigue.

most recipes make minimum 4 portions, so i halve them but, yikes that's still four portions for me.  after eating something for the third day, i have lost all interest.  and then there is the variability of 'pouchy' who often decides for me what will stay down and what will return.

i'm trying different things: making dinner for others-leftovers are plenty for me. downsizing existing recipes-not alway easy or possible.  freezing what i can't enjoy-i hate pulling mystery pks out of the freezer as much as i hate day-four same-meal stuff. 

then i try to reframe my thinking.  In the greater part of the world, the majority of people live on a diet that is some combo of rice and lentils-every day, every meal.  i need to be grateful for an abundance of choices and for every bite even especially when I am sick to death of something. 

last, i give a lot of food away to co-workers,because at least that way i know it's not going to waste. 

 

I have that problem too - in some cases you can split recipes but sometimes its just ridiculously hard to do that - because then you have a bunch of half things in the fridge anyway - the other half of that can of beans, the other chicken breast, etc.  I do freeze out portions of things, but I usually send them to work with my husband more than eat them myself.  Chili and noodle-less lasagna freeze well.  I'll also sometimes cook up a larger than needed batch of something like chicken or lentils and then save some of it to add to a different meal later in the week.  That helps sometimes, but requires me to plan ahead.  But even though I live with a man who has a hearty appetite, we usually have leftovers of everything, and some of it isn't worth keeping for another day - like the sausage and peppers we had today that was horribly salty.  So out it goes.  It bugs me though, like I am doing something wrong, even though I know I'm not - and part of it is what you say - there are people who'd give anything for the food I just threw away.  What kind of person does that make me? 

Im with you Jenn We had to clean our plates and i swore i would never do that to my children. My dh used to tell my boys you dont get up til your plates clean. That was a nono i said do you want them to look like me,solved the problem.. I dont throw food away with my dh and my 3 boys they eat it all...;lol but if we try something new and no one likes it we pass it on.. my mil said to me sunday you have such big boys how do you feed them i told her now they get my portions to.

No one ever told me I had to clean my plate - but I always did, and fast, so I'd be able to get seconds before it was gone.  It was like I was planning ahead for some future disaster where I'd never be able to eat again and so I wanted to get as much fat stored away as possible.  I wonder how much of that kind of behavior is instinctual?  Afterall, its people like us who would have survived a long winter or a famine when all the skinny little weaklings wasted away. 

All I have to say is......My dog has also gained weight since my surgery lol  This is going to sound weird but if my dog is around I don't mind not finishing my food...She gets my left overs...she loves it and it makes me feel better to give it to her ...we went camping and it was there I realized it was HARD to throw my food  away...because I looked for her to give it to her if she was there I would have lol .....Jerry says she used to love him but now she is womans best friend lol So nope your not alone....Get a dog lol ......One bite for her one bite for me.... Hope your weekend was good!  Estelle